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Transcript 034D — Is Water Baptism Necessary to be Born Again?
CALLER: Good evening. I've got a couple questions on water baptism. Does it alone make one born again? And is water baptism necessary to be born again?
HC: Water baptism has no substantive value at all in itself. Water baptism is simply an outward shadow or reflection or sign of the baptism that has taken place in our hearts by the activity of the Holy Spirit.
You see, baptism means to be washed or cleansed, to be purified of our sins. In Ezekiel 36, we read that God says, "I will sprinkle clean water upon you." Now this is not physical water, because God doesn't use physical water. He is using the water which is the Word of God, which is the Gospel.
And we read in Ephesians 5 where it speaks about the washing with the Word. And so He will sprinkle—utilizing this Word—He will cleanse us from our sins. "I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and you will be cleansed of your sins." Now this is baptism in the Holy Spirit. This is to be washed of our sins and to be identified with Christ on the cross, and to be qualified to become a witness. All of this is embraced in the phrase, to be "baptized in the Holy Spirit."
This is the kind of baptism that is being spoken of in Acts 2, where it says in verse 38: "Repent of your sins and be baptized in the name of Jesus for the remission of your sins." This is not water baptism that's in view here, but to be baptized in the Holy Spirit, to have our sins washed away by the application of the Word of God to our lives by the Holy Spirit.
Now to officially recognize this and to declare to the congregation, and to the world, if you will, that we have become saved, we are baptized in water. The water can be sprinkled or poured on, or we can be immersed. The Bible doesn't give any suggestion or any mandate concerning quantity of water. But the water baptism is the official recognition of what has already taken place in our lives.
It is not a requirement for salvation, therefore. We are saved completely apart from water baptism. Now water baptism can be simultaneous with salvation, as occurred in the case of the conversion of the apostle Paul. Water baptism can be after salvation, as it occurred in the case of the family of Cornelius, that you read about in Acts 10. Or water baptism can be before salvation, as occurred in the case of the Samaritans in Acts 8. But water baptism simply signifies that we have become identified with Christ.